Page 77 of The King’s Queen

Pinned in my feline form, my thoughts were a confused muddle, and still the tracker laughed.

Until a bright magic slammed into his side and sent him hurtling through the air, hitting the asphalt so hard he rolled several times before finally coming to a stop.

I changed into my human form and twisted around, reaching for my sword as I tried to face this possible friend or foe.

Prydwen stood on the sidewalk, his sleeves rolled up to reveal his arm tattoos that glowed yellow like the magic that had smacked into the tracker.

A motion of his fingers, and the bright magic that hovered over the tracker zoomed back to Prydwen, giving me a glimpse of what looked like a bowling ball sized bird that had an enormous head, small beak, and whose very essence seemed to radiate magic.

Prydwen nodded to me, and there was something stony about his expression—maybe it was the way the spirals in his eyes seemed to glitter as he stared down the tracker.

Behind me, the tracker roared.

I pivoted to face him, boosting out of my crouch as I pulled my sword free.

The tracker started to stand, until a spear pinned the back of his jacket to the ground.

Following the path of the spear, I looked to the other side of the street and saw Oleander, pulling another spear out of a book sized portal. I barely recognized her, even though she still had her long, blond hair and was wearing a ruffled skirt and a beige trench coat, her expression was so hard and foreign, like Prydwen’s.

It took me a few moments to realize, I was seeing them asfighters; this was what theycouldbe, not what they chose to be.

“There’s a pack of humans two blocks up, coming this way,” Oleander called. “We need to finish this fast.”

I was already sprinting toward the tracker, my sword drawn.

He’d shrugged out of his coat, and was raising his fingers to snap before Prydwen’s shining bird smashed into his hand, stopping the motion.

I was on him before he could do anything more.I have to disable him—so he can’t say anything—or snap!

I clamped my hand around his mouth and then smashed him on the side of the head with the hilt of my sword. His breath rattled as he fell to his knees.

I ruthlessly kicked him—slamming my heel on the small of his back—and he collapsed to the ground.

I fixed my grip on my sword as I stood over the wheezing tracker.

“I called backup, but we still need to finish this quick. Aren’t you going to kill him?” Oleander asked as she strode across the sidewalk, her heels echoing in the eerie silence of the street.

I licked my lips as I stared down at the tracker.

He’d caused me so much pain—he’d hurt myfamily. My sword felt like it burned my hand, and all my instincts screamed that killing him was the only way.

But…I couldn’t.

And not because the Paragon and Queen Leila wanted to question him, but becauseIcouldn’t.

I’d fight—to the death if my family was threatened. But this was a line I couldn’t cross, and I wasn’t going to go against everything I was just for him.

I shook my head. “No, I’ll call it in to the Curia Cloisters. They’re eager to question him.”

Oleander snapped off a nod. “Understood. We’ll hold him while you make the call?” Holding a new spear, she strode closer, beckoning for Prydwen to join her.

Prydwen’s brightly colored bird circled overhead.

I kept my sword at the tracker’s throat until Oleander could take my place. Then I jogged over to Pat and crouched at his side.

“Are you okay?” I asked.

Pat waved me off. “Make the call,” he grunted.

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